Promulgated on Pentecost Sunday, Irving Street Alexandria, MN (320)

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1 The Church of St. Mary Our Mission is to know, love and serve God by living the Eucharist. Promulgated on Pentecost Sunday, Irving Street Alexandria, MN (320) Happy Easter Season to you! We celebrate the First Communion of half of our 2nd graders this Saturday and next weekend at the 10 AM Mass for the other half. It is always a joy to celebrate with these children and their families. A week from Wednesday the Bishop will be here to celebrate Confirmation with our 11th graders, along with those from some of our surrounding parishes. It is their call to own their faith and let it shine. Keep them in Fr. Steve Binsfeld your prayers. Thank you to our Parish Life Committee and Kevin Richmond and his family for the beautiful reception after the Easter Vigil. It was a great evening. A reminder that THIS Tuesday, April 17, at 6:30 PM in the Great Hall Deacon Charles Bobertz Ph.D. will present Jesus in the Gospels: Why the Search for the Historical Jesus Makes No Sense for Catholics (and Other Christians.) Sign up at hospitality desk or online at edu/sot/theology-day or call Our parish has many good DVDs, and books about scripture, sacraments and the like in our Parish Library for our adult membership. Unfortunately, they are all in the School Library which is not open on weekends. During the week our librarian often is teaching computer skills to students. So, this makes materials inaccessible. Both Laurie Youngers and I are culling our personal libraries. With the materials currently in the school library and between the two of us, there are some good things. The Diocese just advertised a new DVD series about the Mass that people have been calling about. We need to have it catalogued and somehow make it available. So I will be working with Aaron, our school librarian, to figure out a way to best do this. But, I would also need some volunteer librarians that would help keep things in order if we make items available after weekend Masses on a cart. Volunteers? Call the office with your phone number and address. Here are some one-liners that I have found that are humorous, but yet poignant: Don t let your worries get the best of you; remember, Moses started out as a basket case. Some people are kind, polite, and sweet-spirited until you try to sit in their pews. Many folks want to serve God, but only as advisers. It is easier to preach ten sermons than it is to live one. The good Lord didn t create anything without a purpose, but mosquitoes come close. When you get to your wit s end, you ll find God lives there. People are funny; they want the front of the bus, the middle of the road, and the back of the church. Opportunity may knock once, but temptation bangs on the front door forever. Quit griping about your church; if it was perfect, you couldn t belong. If a church wants a better pastor, it only needs to pray for the one it has. We re called to be witnesses, not lawyers or judges. God Himself doesn t propose to judge a man until he is dead. So why should we? Some minds are like concrete; thoroughly mixed up and permanently set. Peace starts with a smile. Fr. Steve READINGS FOR THE WEEK OF APRIL 15 TH Monday: Acts 6:8-15; Jn 6:22-29 Tuesday: Acts 7:51-8:1a; Jn 6:30-35 Wednesday: Acts 8:1b-8; Jn 6:35-40 Thursday: Acts 8:26-40; Jn 6:44-51 Friday: Acts 9:1-20; Jn 6:52-59 Saturday Acts 9:31-42; Jn 6:60-69 Sunday: Acts 4:8-12; 1 Jn 3:1-2; Jn 10:11-18 WEEKLY MASS SCHEDULE Daily Mass Server (Tue., Wed., Thu. - Ron Goracke) Monday: No Daily Mass Tuesday: 5:00 PM +John Lonsky Wednesday: 8:30 AM +Ryan Beers Thursday: 7:00 AM +Florence Pomeranz 2:00 PM Windmill Ponds ++Raymond & Dorothy Trousil Friday: 8:30 AM +Irene Bundy Saturday: 5:00 PM For the Parish Sunday: 8:00 AM +Derek Unzen 10:00 AM +Myron & Mary Maudal APRIL RD SUNDAY OF EASTER EUCHARIST SAT 5:00 PM SUN 8:00 AM & 10:00 AM TUE 5:00 PM WED 8:30 AM THU 7:00 AM FRI 8:30 AM RECONCILIATION SAT 4:00 PM or by appointment SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION Saturday at 4 PM in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel (room behind presider s chair; also has a separate entry) BAPTISM All parents must take the Baptism Preparation Course. Call the Parish Office to sign up. Check our website for dates. PREPARATION FOR MARRIAGE Members of the parish (or children of members) must arrange for marriage at least 6 months in advance. Contact the Parish Office for more info. ANNOINTING OF THE SICK is held the 1st Sunday of the month, immediately following the 8AM Mass. Those who wish to be annointed are asked to come to the front of the church. NEW MEMBERS: To register, stop by our Hospitality Desk located in the Commons Area of the church or visit our website to complete the registration online. stmary@stmaryalexandria.org

2 LITURGICAL MINISTERS APRIL 21 ST & 22 ND SATURDAY 5 PM MASS GREETERS: Team 3 - Bernice Wagner, Nancy & Richard Beltz, Susan & Joe Korkowski USHERS: Team 3 - James Lingor, Al Lesner, Shaun Mateer, Curt Mateer, Wayne Siffing, Randy Meyer, Kathleen Lingor EXTRAORDINARY MINISTERS: Team 3 LECTOR 1: Bob Friederichs LECTOR 2: Tom Wosepka SERVERS: Nick Olson, Julia Wilmesmeier SUNDAY 8 AM MASS GREETERS: Team 7-A - C.J. Juenger-Daas, Amie & James Masterson, James & Judith Korkowski, Mary (Jane) Lange, Rose Ann Maloney USHERS: Team 7 - Jeff Perreault, Daniel Ridler, Anton Strasser, Shane Schmidt, David Schmidt, Steven Schmidt, William Verschaetse EXTRAORDINARY MINISTERS: Team 7 LECTOR 1: Nancy Beltz LECTOR 2: Karen Grundei SERVERS: Ella Sanden, Kaitlyn Evjen SUNDAY 10 AM MASS GREETERS: Team 11-A - Gaile Furth, Amy & Nathan Borden USHERS: Team 11 - Randy Kinney, Andrew Bristow, James Kokett, Brad Klinkner, Wayne Decock, Patrick Bruggeman, Nicholas Nettleton, Nathan Borden EXTRAORDINARY MINISTERS: Team 11 LECTOR 1: Michele Neale LECTOR 2: Florian Ledermann SERVERS: Thomas Klecker, Christian Lopez DRIVERS APRIL 22 ND BETHEL MANOR Jerry Wright WINDMILL PONDS Rich Solheid ARABELLA MANOR Ken Wersinger GRAND ARBOR John Hovel & Ron Boyden HOSPITAL/NURSING HOME APRIL 22 ND HOSPITAL Doreen Bartos KNUTE NELSON/NELSON GABLES Ed Desautels & Diane Gay BETHANY Gene Burghardt We wish to offer our sympathy and a promise of our prayers to: Family and friends of Patricia Pahl, Marion Sonstegard, and Ronald Hoffman Thank you to Francie Peterson, Mary Ellen Lyman and Team 8 for serving the luncheon for the funeral of Patricia Pahl. Thank you to Florence Hvezda and Kathy Thoennes and Team 2 for serving the luncheon for the funeral of Marion Sonstegard. Thank you to Mary Larson and Mary Strasser and Team 7 for serving the luncheon for the funeral of Ronald Hoffman. ADULT FAITH FORMATION ADULT BIBLE STUDY: Tuesday evenings in the Great Hall immediately following the 5 PM mass. Call Mike at for more info. MEN S BIBLE STUDY: Thursday mornings in the Commons Area of the church at 6 AM. Call Mike at for more info. WOMEN S BIBLE STUDY: God s love and mercy are immense! There is still time to join and be transformed as we study Father Gaitley s Divine Mercy In The Second Greatest Story Ever Told beginning this weekend. This is a 10-part DVD-based study offered at two different times: Saturday morning from 8-10 AM in the Boy Scout Building and Sunday evenings from 6:30-8:30 PM in St. Mary s School. You may alternate between sessions. No previous study experience necessary! There is no homework with this study! To enroll and for more information contact: Lori or Tammy biblestudywomen@ gmail.com ST. MARY S PRAYER LINK: If you have a prayer request, please send to Wosepkak@aol.com or phone Kelly Wosepka at You may also call Julie Desautels at All prayer requests will be kept confidential. PRAYER OPPORTUNITIES in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel Rosary: Sundays (before Mass) 7:35 AM & 9:35 AM HOLY SPIRIT PRAYER GROUP: Thursdays 5:30 6:00 PM (rosary in Commons Area) 6 7 PM prayer time in the Chapel. Contact Jim Joerger at DIVINE MERCY HOUR: Mondays from 3 4 PM. Contact Barb Nei at SANCTITY OF LIFE PRAYER GROUP: Meets the 1st Wednesday of every month at 7 PM. Contact Louise Revering at EUCHARISTIC ADORATION - SHARING ONE HOUR WITH THE LORD. Adoration is one way you can make prayer and spending time with the Lord a greater priority in your life. Please consider being a regular adorer for our Chapel. For more information - contact Sue McCulloch at (call or text); tscamcculloch@charter.net. BAPTISMS Emryn Kay Child of Corey & Kaley Thoennes Henry Charles Child of Brett & Jennifer Gustafson PRAYER CORNER If you or someone you know in our parish community is sick or ill or has a family member who could use our prayers, please call our Parish Nurse, Kathy Fischer, at Please remember the following people in your prayers: Ruth Partington, Chris Ficenec, Ken Judson, Jim Rutten, Scott Addy, Ione Grubb, Glorene Iverson, Pat Pihaly, Dice Ganje, Carol Peterson, Pat Eich, Lorine Vipond, Yvonne Lorsung, Betty Schlosser, Lyle Keller, Joyce Tomasulo, Melissa Guggisberg, Perry Brown, Patrick Stroh, Chuck Miller, Dan Woods, Rock Anderson, Virgene Grubb, Carla Wheeler, and Geno Ley.

3 PARISH NEWS THE KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS BINGO Sunday, April 15 at 7:00 PM & Wednesday, April 18 at 2:00 PM at the KC Hall on 6th Ave & Nokomis. Team 1 Gary Gruber, Gary Boesen, Jorge Ramos, John Boesen and David Hartman will be in charge. OPEN HOUSE IN HONOR OF SISTER PATRICE AND SISTER SHARON SUNDAY, APRIL 29th 2:00 to 4:30 PM St. Mary s School Gym Special Presentation at 3:00 PM Come and wish them well as they prepare to move to Little Falls to retire. In lieu of gift, donations accepted for Sisters Retirement Fund of Little Falls IT IS A GRAVE MATTER Solar lights are not permitted anywhere in the cemetery. This is being done to keep the cemetery from looking like a carnival. When going to the cemetery early in the morning to blow snow, I noticed several solar lights in different places. Some blink, some have lights that scroll up and down, some are just on. Our fear is that these lights will get more popular, cheaper, have more and more options in the future. Rather than try to set arbitrary parameters to control what can and cannot be placed in the cemetery, it was decided to keep the cemetery as a place of rest and respect and not allow any solar lights at all. When the ground thaws, we will pull the existing lights out and place them in the wagon in the chapel for you to pick up by May 1. After that date, they will be discarded. - CEMETERY CLEAN UP SAVE THE DATE - May 17 at 1:00 PM, More info to come! OUR PICTURE DIRECTORY WON T BE COMPLETE WITHOUT YOU! Sign-up after Masses this weekend, or go to stmaryalexandria.org and click on Picture Directory Sign-Up on the home page to reserve your photo session time. Online sign-up will be available Monday through Friday. Plenty of good times remain. VOLUNTEERS NEEDED: We are looking for people to help during the photo sessions to greet parishioners when they arrive. Our photo sessions will be held Tuesday through Saturday. We will hold a volunteer training on April 24th at 5:30 PM in the Great Hall following daily Mass, a light dinner will be served. Please contact Laurie at for more information. DAUGHTERS OF ISABELLA will meet Thursday, April 19 at 7:00 PM in the Commons Area. Please note the time change. THANK YOU everyone who brought items to the rummage sale and helpers. The Boy Scouts did a super job! - Cecelia Haffner, Chairperson THE TASTE OF DOUGLAS COUNTY April 19, 2018, 5:00 till 7:00 PM at Holiday Inn, Alexandria, MN.Tickets $25 in advance, or $30 at the door. Tickets can be purchased by calling or at Elden s Fresh Foods, Bremer Bank Downtown,Trumm Drug Downtown, or at KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS members will be handing out Tootsie Rolls in hopes of donations for our annual Special Olympics Fundraiser after all Masses on the weekends of April 22 nd and 29 th. The donations go directly to the Alexandria Special Olympics escrow account. Thank you and enjoy! ABOUT LIFE JUSTICE PEACE AND THE INTEGRITY OF CREATION (JPIC): We will be giving out 25 Red Maple Trees after each Mass on April 28th & April 29th. The trees will go to the first ones agreeing to plant and care for them as they grow. Last year Ron and Ginny Hoffman planted one of the trees! The United Nations, The Climate Change Organization, Lions International, and other organizations support the planting of trees to help the earth (and all of us) breathe! The Outreach Food Shelf and JPIC wants to thank all who contributed to the Minnesota Food Share campaign in March. There was $2, donated and 4,352 pounds of food collected. All contributions are greatly appreciated. SANCTITY OF LIFE MOMENT: You are a forgiving God, Gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. (Nehemiah 9:17) Visit St. Mary s Sanctity of Life online at for information or resources. Meets the 2nd Monday of each month from 7:00 8:30 PM in the prayer room in St. Mary s School. Please join us! Contact Bruce Becker for more info: or bbecker100@gmail.com.

4 STEWARDSHIP STEWARDS OF THE CHURCH: Stewards of God s gifts are not passive beneficiaries, but collaborators with God. We are obliged to be stewards of the Church, collaborators and cooperators in continuing the redemptive work of Jesus the Church s essential mission. This mission, proclaiming and teaching, serving and sanctifying, is our task. It is the personal responsibility of each of us. All members of the Church have their roles to play in carrying out its mission: Parents, who nurture their children in the light of faith; Parishioners, who work in concrete ways to make their parishes true communities of faith and vibrant sources of service to the larger community; All Catholics who give generous support-time, money, prayers and personal service according to their circumstances to parish and diocesan programs and to the universal Church. Excerpt from: THE THEOLOGY OF STEWARDSHIP A Summary of the United States Bishops Pastoral Letter on Stewardship RELIGIOUS EDUCATION stmreled@stmaryalexandria.org Grades 1-5: Grades 6-11: CLASS SCHEDULE April 18, 3:45-4:30 PM April 18, 6:30-8:00 PM JR/SR HIGH FAITH FORMATION Junior High - The 6th-8th graders will be continuing their semester on morality by learning about the importance of society and community for the human person as well as the necessity of authority for society to properly function. They will also learn about the importance of their own participation and how their actions affect the whole. Senior High - This week the 11th graders will have Confirmation Rehearsal and they will meet in the Great Hall beginning promptly at 6:30. 9th and 10th graders will be heading directly to small group locations. The 9th and 10th graders will be continuing their series on morality with a night on conscience formation. They will learn how forming our conscience is an integral part of a Christian life. They will be challenged to be more intentional about forming their conscience, rather than allowing the prevailing culture to form it for them. FROM THE DIOCESE OF ST CLOUD In 1994, the Diocese of Saint Cloud established a program to help victims/survivors of sexual misconduct on the part of church personnel. Anyone who has experienced such misconduct---no matter how long ago---is encouraged to contact a victim advocate. The advocate will listen, support, and assist the victim/survivor take whatever steps he/she feels is appropriate to promote healing and recovery. (Your privacy will be respected.) ASSISTANCE COORDINATOR FOR THE DIOCESE OF SAINT CLOUD: Roxann Storms, MSW, LICSW, FT (320) (confidential line). ADVOCATES: Jane Blee St. Cloud (320) Tom Klecker St. Joseph (320) Peggy Rezac Fergus Falls (218) Jennifer Wirz Central MN (320) Rev. Stanley Wieser Wheaton (español) (320) Congratulations to these children who received their 1st Communion at St. Mary s on Saturday, April 14! Braden Adelman Madelyn Faber Brody Freier Braden Gorres Carter Gronwold Connor Hawkins Elena Heinen Joshua Johnson Kaelyn Karels Micah Kietzmann Lucas Korman Owen Loch Abby Olson Avery Olson Sabrina Patrick-Dropik Brooke Persons Ethan Radil Jacobo Ramos Allie Schueller Kadrie Serie Libby Steidl Addison Suchy Braxton Twa Ella Walz Dhani Wencl-Singh Chloe Zachariason

5 RELIGIOUS EDUCATION /50 CLUB SOCIAL MEDIA Please join us for our final 50/50 Club session for this season on April 18th at 6:45 PM at the KC Hall. We will be discussing the topic of Social Media and how it is affecting our teens and pre-teens. Bruce Becker will be leading the discussion and showing some short video clips presented by various leaders and professionals in the child welfare sector. Our goal is to try to arm you with information and links with up-to-date information and strategies to help you understand and better respond to the changing culture that is being dominated by social media. VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL IS COMING!! JUNE 11 14, 2018 Join us this summer for VBS St. Mary s annual summer vacation kick-off. During this busy time we present God s word to children (ages 3 Grade 3) in four fun, activitypacked mornings. Registration and Volunteer forms can be found at the Hospitality Desk, in the Rel. Ed. office or on our website at stmaryalexandria.org/vacation-bible-school/ We are looking for helpers of all ages. We need teachers, recreation helpers, craft helpers, snack preparers, music leaders, and aides. We also need someone to lead the Faith Fun classes this is the time we celebrate and highlight our Catholic Identify (not found in other community VBS programs). Classes run from 9:00 AM Noon. Volunteer position hours vary depending on the job. Grab a friend and come join us! Call or to volunteer!! ST. MARY S SCHOOL St. Mary s School educates the whole child within a nurturing Catholic Christian environment. PENNY CHALLENGE RESULTS St. Mary s School students participated in a Lenten service project called The Penny Challenge. During the Fridays of Lent, the students brought in their coins and paper money to compete with one another in collecting the most pennies. As the pennies were being collected, classes added silver coins or dollar bills into their competitors jars. The amount of silver and paper money placed in the jars was then subtracted from the total amount of pennies. After all the pennies were collected and the silver and paper money were subtracted from the jars, a classroom winner was determined. This year s winner of the Penny Challenge was Mrs. Finnestad s 2nd grade class! They had a total of $58.14 after the silver coins and bills were subtracted from their penny total. As a group, the children of St. Mary s School raised a total of $1, This entire amount was donated to the American Heart Association. I am very proud of the students for their generosity! Below is a breakdown of class contributions and totals. Mr. Sladek stmaryss@stmaryalexandria.org CALENDAR RAFFLE WINNERS APRIL 2018 April 8 Lorraine Mrnak, Alexandria $35 April 9 Chris Merten, Alexandria $20 April 10 Justin Evans, Alexandria $20 April 11 Brian Klimek, Alexandria $20 April 12 Carol Hoffman, Alexandria $20 April 13 Adam Graf, Alexandria $20 April 14 Jeff Roquette, Alexandria $20 SCHOOL HAPPENINGS Kindergarten Registrations are being accepted. Please contact the school office for more details. Save the Date St. Mary s School Trust Fund Golf Tournament is scheduled for Wednesday, May 30th.

6 PARISH STAFF STEVE BINSFELD Pastor TODD WENTWORTH Parish Business Administrator LAURIE YOUNGERS Director of Music & Liturgy KATHY FISCHER Parish Nurse TROY SLADEK School Principal & Elementary Religious Education LAURIE BIENIAS Logistics Coordinator GINA POHLEN Coordinator of Youth Ministries & Confirmation COMMITTEE CHAIRS ELMER KOBBERMANN FRANCIE PETERSON Parish Trustees STEVE RUSSELL Pastoral Council President MIKE DOLAN Finance Committee FRANCIE PETERSON Board of Education TAMMY BOUSHEK Committee for Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation (JPIC) VERNA WINTER Parish Life Committee LEON BREUN Cemetery Committee CARING & SHARING ROOM PASTORAL COUNCIL PRESIDENT: Steve Russell VICE PRESIDENT: Mike Sponsler SECRETARY: Sonya Skinner Megan Bristow, Tammy Huss, Dan Hillback, Dawn Houska, Mary Jane Reif, Tabatha Odens FINANCIAL GIFTS COLLECTION FOR THE WEEKEND OF APRIL 8, 2018 ACTUAL BUDGETED Sunday Envelope Loose Sunday Children $25, $2, $19.50 $29, $2, $ A more detailed report may be viewed at the Parish Office. LITURGICAL & MUSICAL NOTES Glancing Thoughts Third Sunday of Easter April 15, 2018 Eleonore Stump What Are We Supposed To Do? Once, in perplexity, people asked Jesus, What are we supposed to do? (John 6:28). The Second Reading raises this question for us too. The Second Reading says that if you don t keep God s commandments but say that you know the Lord, you are a liar. Being a liar is bad enough. But the Second Reading also says that if you don t keep the Lord s commandments, you don t know the Lord. If we believe that Jesus is the Savior, sent by God to save us from our sins, then, sinful as we are, we are in fact keeping the commandment the Lord gave the people. That is the worst, isn t it? Especially because the test for whether or not you know the Lord is not whether you have fervent prayer or sweet religious experience. No, the test is just whether you keep the Lord s commandments. That is why you lie if you don t keep the Lord s commandments but still try to tell yourself and others that you know the Lord. In another passage, this same Epistle (1 John 1:6-8) claims that if you say you have no sin, you are a liar, too. And now we have a real puzzle, don t we? To avoid the sin of lying, you have to confess that you do sinful things. But then you are confessing that you aren t keeping the Lord s commandments, aren t you? And in that case, you are a liar, and you don t know the Lord. Well, then, what are we supposed to do? The answer is in what Jesus told the people when they asked him that very question. Jesus said, Believe in the one whom God has sent. (John 6:29) Notice that this is a command. And here is what it means. We can tell the truth: we are sinful. But it doesn t follow that we don t keep God s commandments. If we believe that Jesus is the Savior, sent by God to save us from our sins, then, sinful as we are, we are in fact keeping the commandment the Lord gave the people when they asked him what they were supposed to do. And if we keep his command, then it is also true that we know him. We know him as the Christ, sent by God to save us from our sins. It can be true then both that we are sinful and that we keep the commandment of the Lord if we believe that he will save us from our sinfulness. So this is what we are supposed to do: know him. Eleonore Stump Eleonore Stump is Professor of Philosophy, Saint Louis University Copyright 2018, Eleonore Stump. All Rights Reserved. Permission is hereby granted to reproduce for personal or parish use.

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